1 Also known as Occam’s razor, law of parsimony, law of economy, and principle of simplicity. The term “Ockham’s razor” references William of Ockham, a 14th century Franciscan friar and logician who purportedly made abundant use of the principle. The principle does not actually appear in any of his extant writings and, in truth, little is known about either the origin of the principle or its originator. See, for example, “The Myth of Occam’s Razor” by W. M. Thorburn, Mind, 1918, vol. 27, p. 345–353.
2 “Make all visual distinctions as subtle as possible, but still clear and effective. ” Visual Explanations by Edward R. Tufte, Graphics Press, 1998, p. 73.
Get Universal Principles of Design, Revised and Updated now with the O’Reilly learning platform.
O’Reilly members experience books, live events, courses curated by job role, and more from O’Reilly and nearly 200 top publishers.
